What Will You Do?

Something wonderful happened this weekend.

I couldn’t wait to share it with you. Do you remember how I nag about letting God make life interesting for you. I recall mentioning that God can rev up your engines about a project, if you just let Him flesh out an idea. I finally, took my advice.

This weekend I thought, why not I try something new. So, on a whim, I picked up my son’s craft paint and kiddy brushes and painted a flower. I was quickly absorbed in the deep rich colors and the strokes of the cheap little brush. I added light colors to dark. Each timid swipe built to a calmer, steadier proceeding stroke. Had I known all along? Had my mind always gravitated to the artist’s palette? I looked around my home and hanging around me, in a dozen or more spots, I found natural beauty wrought by an artist’s brush! I couldn’t believe it. I still can’t. God knew about this unconscious magnetism all along!

Do I dare continue forward? A resounding yes, pounded my brain.

So I bought a trial set of oils and a canvas–on sale. I thought if I’m terrible beyond measure, I’ll never look at it again. Then, I went online and found a famous tv painter on YouTube. I set up my paints and old, dry-erase, board-easel, placed the canvas on it and hesitated. The cheap bristled brush shook over the intimidating sea of white. What would I paint? Where would I start? I swallowed hard and put the magenta dobbed brush to canvas. The color was true and I was hooked! I did three large paintings in twenty-four hours. Each an improvement on the last.

Emotions bubbled inside my like the turmoil of a crashing wave. They were mixed, joy, fun, relief, astonishment, fun, energy and the waves of them kept coming. There is no way I could turn back now. How could I retrace my steps back to my old, undiscovered self? I’d have to mark the trail and return again and again like a chain-smoking monkey. I’d have to get my fix.